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Home , Bei Mir Bistu Shein, Buddy DeSylva, Hugh Martin, Lew Brown, Ralph Blane, Stephanie Blythe

1. Please Be Kind (1938) 8. Any Place I Hang My Hat (1946)/ / 3:06 One for My Baby (1943) / 6:00 2. Bei Mir Bist Du Schön (1932/1937) Sammy Cahn-Saul Chaplin/ 2:57 9. How Deep is the Ocean? (1932) 2:39 3. Serenade in Blue (1942) Mack Gordon/ 4:24 10. The Man That Got Away (1953) /Harold Arlen 4:19 4. The White Cliffs of Dover (1941) Nat Burton/Walter Kent 5:30 11. The Thrill is Gone (1931) /Roy Henderson 4:26 5. Look for the Silver Lining (1919) Buddy DeSylva/ 2:30 12. Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (1931) Billy Moll-Ted Koehler/Harry Barris 2:41 6. Always (1925) Irving Berlin 4:44 13. When You Wish Upon a Star (1940) Ned Washington/Leigh Harline 4:04 7. Love (1945) / 3:10 14. This Is All I Ask (1965) Gordon Jenkins 4:02 — - 55:32 - —

© Meyer Sound Laboratories Inc. All Rights Reserved, 2013. innova® Recordings is the label of the American Forum.   innova 875   www.innova.mu www.meyersound.com From Stephanie Blythe – The first half of what has been dubbed “The American Century” witnessed an out- There are so many folks that helped pouring of popular song unrivalled by any other country on earth. During those rich It all began with dinner. I met the to make this all possible: the brilliant years, music and lyrics of the highest craftsmanship flowed from the imaginations of brilliant couple, John and Helen team at Meyer Sound Laboratories our nation’s greatest popular . The most enduring of these standards from Meyer, at a fundraising dinner held at working with the amazing John Pel- the golden years of , musical theater, and film comprise the canon now Meyer Sound Laboratories in Berke- lowe, the always incisive, wonderful ley, CA, following a concert given by Evans Mirageas, John and Helen commonly known as the “.” These were songs intended Craig Terry and myself to raise funds always checking in, making sure that for, or adopted by the most accomplished singers of the twentieth century, like Bing for Cal Performances. The concert was everything was all right, taking care of Crosby, Ethyl Merman, , , and Frank Sinatra. held in their Pearson Theater. When our every need, right down to beauti- Continuing this lineage of artists in our own generation is Stephanie Blythe, I first saw the space, I was shocked; I fully catered meals before every ses- whose vocal beauty and communicative powers combine to express a nation’s hopes, am used to singing in large spaces, and sion. It was four days of unadulterated dreams, loves, and values. On television and stages throughout our country she has this was petite, to say the least. What bliss. And most importantly, we were breathed new life into these works in interpretations that still possess the ability to I was to discover was that this glori- all THRILLED by the results. We touch contemporary audiences. Her deep commitment and authority in presenting ous space could create any acoustic we wanted a recorded sound that makes this repertoire have made Stephanie Blythe the reigning Queen of American Song could possibly desire, allowing us to the listener feel like they are right in our time. Her creative partnership with the remarkable pianist Craig Terry in this play with the most intimate or grand there in the room with us, and that, of musical textures – granting us a my dears, is what we got! collection marks a dynamic collaboration that celebrates our wealth of American clarity of sound and freedom that is song classics. not always guaranteed in the largest How can I begin to thank Craig The sense of irrepressible optimism that has long typified the indomitable spirit concert halls. Terry? Perhaps by just saying that our of the American character shines through in Look For The Silver Lining, the hit of collaborations make my heart soar, my the 1919 musical , with songs by Jerome Kern and Bud DeSylva, and highlight- Sitting with John and Helen later that brain shout with joy, and my voice feel ing the great star . The broadly lyrical gestures of the night over our meal, I asked a million as if it can say absolutely anything – melody resonate with Kerns’ early training in operetta composition, while DeSylva’s questions. How was this exquisite and that you always play the perfect text reassures that life’s clouds will vanish with a sunny disposition. sound made possible? How can this question for me to answer, and play Even a calamity as grave as the Great Depression proved incapable of crushing be utilized in the concert theater? the perfect answer to my question. this hopeful spirit, which was shored up during those dark years by upbeat songs like Might it be used for recording? My biggest issue with recording my own Thank you, darling Caroline – this is Harry Barris, Ted Koehler and Billy Moll’s Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams. First voice was that when I listened to as much your accomplishment as it is popularized in 1931 by the new crooning sensation Bing Crosby, its swinging dance- playbacks, it never really sounded like mine. like melody and confident dismissal of cares offered a welcome diversion from the me – I was interested in a sound that economic troubles of the day. was honest, generous and real. After Lastly, I would like to dedicate this The tradition of the Broadway revue that had been established in the early twen- talking with John, I just mentioned recording to my fabulous husband, tieth century by Florenz Ziegfeld’s lavish Follies revues continued in George White’s casually that if Meyer Sound was in- David Smith-Larsen. You make it all Scandals, which ran between 1919 and 1939. The Scandals of 1931, scored by the song- terested in doing any experiments with worthwhile, lover! writing team of DeSylva, Brown and Henderson, and starring Rudy Vallee, Ethel recording, I was their gal. That was Merman, , and Alice Faye, ran for 202 performances. Its most endur- the beginning – Helen Meyer did her ing number, The Thrill Is Gone, expresses the bitter disillusionment of a faded love. magic – she asked all the right ques- tions, got all the right people together, While relatively rare in American popular song, the minor mode appeared here and and Craig Terry and I were given an several other times during the Depression years, as reality surged to the surface amid opportunity of which we had only the era’s cheerily escapist songs. dreamed: to record these wonderful Irving Berlin, America’s most prolific genius of both music and words, also turned songs in a loving, supportive, imagi- to the minor mode the following year in the plaintive love ballad, How Deep Is The native place with amazing, talented, Ocean? It is a verseless song with lyrics that cut directly to the heart with nothing innovative people. more than a series of disarmingly straightforward reflective questions. The melody lies almost entirely within an octave and moves pensively in small intervals, creat- tion of African-American musical language was never far away, even in songs that ing the melancholic feeling of one desperately seeking words worthy of expressing a were intended for white stars. A lonely bar near closing time and a solitary customer profound love. bending a bartender’s ear while drowning his sorrows over a lost love sets up Johnny Berlin had explored the depth of romantic commitment in an equally original way Mercer’s evocative scenario for one of Arlen’s most masterful songs, One For My several years earlier. Following a period of mourning for the loss of his first wife in Baby. Another single narrowly-ranged phrase broods repeatedly, broken only by the 1913, he had begun to court Ellin Mackay, a member of a prominent Catholic social- weary toast that concludes each A section, “make it one for my baby, and one more for ite family. In defiance of the wishes of Ellin’s father, who objected to the ’s the road.” Incapable of being confined to the conventional 32 bars of melody, Arlen Jewish immigrant heritage, the couple eventually eloped in 1926. Although Ellin allowed the emotional overflow of Mercer’s lyrics to spill over into an unrestrained 48 suffered disinheritance as a result, she – and the American people – received, in honor bars. Stephanie Blythe and Craig Terry reveal the affinity between these two Arlen of their wedding, the gift of one of the most cherished of all his songs, Always. The road songs by interweaving the verses into their own unique composite arrangement. remarkably economical chorus is unified by a simple rising five-note motive and by Arlen later teamed with Ira Gershwin on the score for the 1954 re- the all-important word that closes nearly every phrase – “always.” make of “A Star is Born,” which marked a triumphal comeback for Judy Garland. “Bei Mir Bistu Shein” (“To Me You are Beautiful”), from a short-lived 1932 Yid- Wee hours in a bar room were again the backdrop, this time for a late-night rehearsal dish musical comedy by Shalom Secunda and Jacob Jacobs attracted the attention of the heartbreaking torch song The Man That Got Away. Nominated for Best Orig- of lyricist Sammy Cahn after hearing it presented by African-American perform- inal Song in 1955, it would become, along with many Arlen songs, closely identified ers (in !) at the in in 1937. Following purchase of with Judy Garland. the copyright for a meager sum, Cahn and creative partner, composer Saul Chaplin The 1945 all-star film extravaganza “Ziegfeld Follies” revolved around the premise transformed the song into a syncopated swing number with the Germanicized title of the late Florenz Ziegfeld’s fantastical posthumous vision of reviving his famous Bei Mir Bist Du Schön. The novelty of an ethnically flavored melody in the minor Follies, employing MGM’s current top stars. One of these, , was featured mode, fused with clever rhyme-play in syncopated swing rhythms proved irresistible in a production number set in a West-Indies cabaret. Love, the sultry song composed to the young American public. The November 1937 recording by for her by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, simmers with an eruptive exoticism be- propelled the unknown group to instant stardom, along with the first gold record ever neath the surface as the lyrics recount the many forms that love might take. awarded to a female vocal ensemble. The success of Chaplin and Cahn continued into The power of sincerely wished dreams was never more eloquently expressed than the next year with another hit, the sweetly pleading Please Be Kind. in what may be the most iconic of all American animated film images – that of Popular song became a powerful vehicle for international solidarity during World Jiminy Cricket, voiced by the falsetto crooner Cliff Edwards, singing When You War II. First popularized in England by Vera Lynn, and in America by the beloved Wish Upon A Star in ’s Pinocchio. After winning the Academy Award radio star Kate Smith, the nostalgic White Cliffs Of Dover by Englishmen Walter for Best Original Song in 1940 with composer partner Leigh Harline, lyricist Ned Kent and Nat Burton kept patriotic morale strong on both sides of the Atlantic in Washington went on to be nominated for nine additional over the 1942. Later that year, Harry Warren, of 42nd Street and other Depres- next 22 years. So memorable was the song’s message, that it was adopted as the theme sion Era film scores, teamed with Mack Gordon to reveal a surprisingly soulful side song of Disney’s weekly television program, where it continued to cast its magic over of his musical persona with the similarly wistful swing ballad, Serenade In Blue. Its new generations of young viewers. melancholy rising and chromatically weeping lines were perfectly tailored for the Although the bulk of songs from the Great American Songbook span from the expressive trombone style of bandleader , whose rendition of the song 1920s to the 1950s, one later masterpiece might be considered the worthy capstone was immortalized in the 1942 Hollywood film, “Orchestra Wives.” of that glorious canon. This Is All I Ask, by one of the most influential arranger- More consistently at home with the blues idiom was Harold Arlen. The son of songwriters of the mid-twentieth century, Gordon Jenkins, was composed for Sep- a Jewish cantor, Harold had grown up in a two-family house in Buffalo that they tember of My Years, Frank Sinatra’s 1965 album of songs on the theme of aging. A shared with an African-American family, sowing the seeds of a lifelong attraction to single brief verse musing over the joy of maturity sets up the generously lyrical cho- the music of that culture. His 1943 collaboration with lyricist Johnny Mercer on the rus, a euphoric litany of appeals to the providers of life’s simplest pleasures. A raptur- musical St. Louis Woman, starring Lena Horne and Pearl Bailey, featured Any Place I ous climax fittingly crowns the song – and this anthology by Stephanie Blythe and Hang My Hat Is Home. Characteristic of many of Arlen’s melodies, the confinement Craig Terry – with the ecstatic plea to “let the music play as long as there’s a song to of the range of the melody’s A section to no more than three notes is reminiscent sing”! of early blues, imparting a complacently cool swagger to the lyrics. Arlen’s absorp- – Gary Busch Mezzo-Soprano Stephanie Blythe has captivated audiences at the greatest houses, symphony and recital halls of the world. At the , , , , House Covent Garden, the Opera National de Paris and other compa- nies, Ms. Blythe is known for her diverse repertoire, which includes Handel, Verdi and Wagner. In As Long As There Are Songs, Stephanie Blythe reveals another side of her multi-faceted career. Through this intimate recording, Ms. Blythe celebrates the glorious popular music of the 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s — the songs that defined the American musical aesthetic before the advent of rock n’ roll. Ms. Blythe and her collaborative partner, Craig Terry, have been in high demand throughout the US for this program and for her evening celebrating the musical legacy of an American icon, the legendary Kate Smith. www.opus3artists.com/artists/stephanie-blythe

A native of Tullahoma, Tennessee, pianist Craig Terry enjoys an international career performing with some of the world’s leading singers and instrumentalists. Currently Mr. Terry is in his eighth season as Assistant Conductor, and has recently been named Music Director of the Ryan Opera Center at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Previously, he served as Assistant Conductor at the Metropolitan Opera after joining its Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. In addition to his work with Stephanie Blythe, Mr. Terry has performed with such esteemed vocalists Christine Brewer, Nicole Cabell, Giuseppe Filianoti, Joseph Kaiser, Danielle De Niese, Patricia Racette, Hugh Russell, and Garrett Sorenson. He has col- laborated as a chamber musician with members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra, the Gewandhaus Orchester, the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic, and the Pro Arte String Quartet. Mr. Terry made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2000 and has also per- formed at Avery Fisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A Note from John Meyer —

This bold and dynamic performance was recorded live on December 16, 2013, at Meyer Sound Labo- ratories’ Pearson Theatre in Berkeley, CA, using a new recording technique developed by John Meyer. Impressed by the acoustics of this unique space during her May 2012 benefit performance for Cal Performances, Stephanie Blythe chose to record her first album of popular songs here. John Meyer’s recording technique enables listeners to experience Blythe and accompanist Craig Terry at their most natural-sounding, as if they were in the session with the artists themselves. Meyer’s technique takes full advantage of the low distortion and high dynamic range of today’s record- ing and audio technologies. This contrasts with conventions of high compression and limited bandwidth first established in the 1950s, designed to maximize the broadcast power from AM radio stations; tech- niques that are still in use today. To add to the authenticity of this recording, no post-process filtering, compression or electronic spatial enhancements were used during the recording or mastering processes. As a result, many listeners will be surprised by what they hear since the artists’ true dynamic range, articulation, ensemble and intonation are faithfully reproduced as they would be experienced by a live audience in an intimate, acoustic space. Throughout each song the dynamics build in volume and intensity just as the artist performed them. To accomplish this quality of recording, the Pearson Theatre utilized a Meyer Sound Constellation Recording produced by Meyer Sound Laboratories Inc. Special thanks to Matias Tarnopolsky acoustic system – technology that enables the acoustical properties of a room to be altered to suit the na- Executive producer: Evans Mirageas for his inspiration and support. ture of any given performance. Constellation provided the appropriate reverberation and early reflections Recording consultant: John Meyer Photos: Jesse Goff Recordings engineers: John Pellowe and Miles Rogers innova is supported by an endowment for Blythe’s performance. Recording microphones chosen for their quality and accuracy were placed in the Music Editor: Ian Watson from the McKnight Foundation. far field to capture a delicate blend of direct and reverberant energy. Carefully specified distances created Philip Blackburn, director, design spatial enhancement of the voice and piano. Ultimately it is the pure joy inherent in Blythe and Terry’s All original musical scores were arranged specifically for Chris Campbell, operations manager this recording by Craig Terry and Stephanie Blythe. Steve McPherson, publicist www.innova.mu performance that brings this recording to life.